Recipe of the Week: Changing weather calls for versatile meals

The changing weather (moving from cold to warm to cold) means it must be March in Bucks County.
Food cravings have become variable as well. A day of warm weather makes us crave lovely salads, while a blast of cold makes us long for a hearty stew or grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup.
How about finding something in between like a filling soup such as minestrone or pasta e fagioli with a loaf of crusty fresh bread? Or a frittata or a casserole filled with vegetables and a little pasta or potatoes?

We don’t think much about middle-of-the-road eating, but it’s what we do most of the time. A meal of chicken filet or pork chop cooked in a skillet with a quick pan sauce and sides of rice and a vegetable can be put together in 45 minutes or less and is just the right amount of food for a middle-of-the-road day.

Here is one of my favorites, from “How to Cook Without a Book” by Bucks County’s own chef-extraordinaire Pam Anderson. For this recipe you can use turkey, chicken cutlets, boneless pork chops, tenderloins, steaks or burgers. I confess I have made this sauce with white wine and liked it very much with chicken cutlets.

Red Wine-Dijon Pan Sauce

1 pound meat or poultry cutlets, chops or fillets, dipped in seasoned flour (1/4 cup flour combined
with salt and ground black pepper to taste) and sauteed in 2 tablespoons butter and 1 tablespoon oil.

¼ cup canned low-sodium chicken broth

¼ cup full-bodied red wine

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon butter

1. Sauté meat or poultry in seasoned flour, using meat thermometer to check when they are done, then set aside.
2. Leave drippings in pan, and measure broth, wine and mustard in a measuring cup (liquid always totals ½ cup).
3. Pour liquid into hot skillet after meat or poultry have been removed.
4. Cook until liquid is reduced by half.
5. Tilt the skillet and whisk in butter, then spoon over each portion and serve.

Join our readers whose generous donations are making it possible for you to read our news coverage. Help keep local journalism alive and our community strong. Donate today.